Under Construction
by RealTechnorat
Summary: (de-anon from kink meme) Tsukiyama Shuu promised to be the dagger underneath Kaneki Ken's pillow. Which, of course, meant sharing a room with the younger man. (spoilers for Tokyo Ghoul manga, canon divergence)
1. Chapter 1

_hope you enjoy!_

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Tsukiyama wonders when had his desire to eat the one-eyed ghoul lessened. It hadn't fully gone away; he still wanted to 'eat' the boy, but in other ways if you catch my drift. He also wouldn't oppose if Kaneki would allow him a bite or two as well, but he did not want to kill the boy. Perhaps when he saw how the one-eyed had been changed, thoroughly shaken, from the torture, he may have wanted to coddle the boy. Perhaps to win Kaneki's trust and devour him… or maybe just the first half. Even someone as horrible as Tsukiyama Shuu could have romantic desires.

But then again, Kaneki is pretty strong now.

Well, at least in body. Mind? Not so much. At least not anymore.

For a _dolce_ young man such as Kaneki Ken to have these psychological breakdowns was just… tragic. Too much weight had been pushed onto his narrow shoulders. And then, his obsession with protecting those dear to him did not help matters. He willingly accepted all of the grief, all of the blame, pushing himself further and further into despair.

When the gourmet decided to try to _court_ the younger man was up to debate. Perhaps soon after he had decided to cheer him up.

Tsukiyama had found an ally of sorts in the little lady. Hinami too wanted to get Kaneki back to normal. Perhaps she didn't have an agenda like Tsukiyama did. But, who could resist the boy? Have they seen the boy without his shirt on? Tsukiyama had… _Magnifique! _The purple haired man shook his head. _Calmato_, he told himself. No time to think about the younger man's gorgeous… well toned body. Oh, he just wanted to lick those abs. He took deep breaths, trying to calm down. _Calmato. _

No, no. He had to figure out how to cheer up Kaneki. The boy came before Tsukiyama's perverse desires. But… if those two could go hand-in-hand… Mmmm. _Délicieux. _

Kaneki Ken was a bit of a bookworm when they first met, he remembered. Tsukiyama thought it was a shame that the boy hadn't kept up with his reading once he had been turned into a ghoul.

And so he took it upon himself to bring him some of his own favorite books. ..._Non, _Kaneki deserved the newest editions!

And that's how he ended up knocking on the white haired boy's door.

Well, more accurately. He let himself in before he could be stopped and knocked on the wall. "How do you feel, Kaneki-kun?" he asked.

The boy was half curled in on himself, but he quickly sat up once he heard the other man's voice. His eyes were sleepy and a bit puffed up… Tsukiyama could smell some salt… Had he been crying? There were dark circles under his eyes. His sleep had also been disturbed. His hurting Banjou had deeply affected him. "I'm sorry… But can you leave me alone for a while, Tsukiyama-san?" Was he… pouting? How adorable. It reminded the gourmet of how he used to be.

"I don't plan to take too long," he said, a smile on his thin lips. He gave Kaneki the shopping bag, a slight weight. "I thought I could lift your mood up a bit… I bought you some novels of my choice." There was silence as the white haired boy sat up and began to examine the books. He put them on the bedside table and looked back at Tsukiyama, who had taken a seat next to him on the bed.

"You don't need to blame yourself, just because you've hurt someone" the gourmet said suddenly. "Just like when you're walking, you can't really blame yourself for crushing some ants. That's what being the 'stronger ones' means." Tsukiyama thought he was doing the 'comfort' thing pretty well.

"You've got that right with you," he continues. "Even if you ignore or crush that shitty pride of yours, it will be fine. That's because you've got that right… A worthy amount of it. I'll always stay by your side. Please just remember this." He holds a finger to his lips. "I'm not going to protect you by being your shield or armor… I will be the _dagger _hidden below your pillow."

He left the room without bringing up Kaneki's annoyed expression and lack of appreciation.

In the morning, Kaneki comes to him. He is still pale, with dark, dark bags underneath his eyes. "Tsukiyama-san," he says. "Can I have a word with you?"

"Why, of course, Kaneki-kun," Tsukiyama says, getting up off of the couch and following the boy back to his room. Really, it was the first time in days that Kaneki left his room and he did so just to find the gourmet. He could feel a nervous sort of excitement well up inside of himself.

The white haired boy sat on the bed and Tsukiyama could see the exhaustion seeping from his body. Another night of sub-par sleep?

"Ah, Kaneki-kun, what do you need?" Tsukiyama loves the taste of the boy's name on his tongue. He would probably love the taste of anything that had to do with Kaneki, to be perfectly frank. His obsession with the boy was problematic. But, he was only a few years older so he should stop thinking of the one-eyed ghoul as merely a 'boy.' "If you require more books, I'd be happy to comply."

"No, but thank you, Tsukiyama-san," he says, quietly, not meeting the other's eyes. "And… I want to take you up on your promise. But if you do something… unnecessary… I will not hesitate to end you." His eyes are intense… The older loved this badass version of the naive boy. Tsukiyama Shuu and Kaneki Ken came to sharing a room. Kaneki didn't explain his reasons. Why would he? He was the leader. He could do whatever he wanted.

But to let a man who had expressed desire to eat him share a sleeping quarters… That was dangerous.

Not a bed. No, the gourmet slept in a chair next to the bed. But it was good enough for Tsukiyama, even if his back ached in the morning.

Kaneki Ken had night terrors. Tsukiyama learned this the first night he slept in the same room. Kaneki had been asleep for maybe fifteen minutes before he sat up and started to sob loudly. His eyes were wide open but he was staring at nothing. Something that only he could see was terrorizing him.

"Kaneki-kun?" Tsukiyama said sleepily. "What's wrong?"

His only answer came from a few terrified sobs.

Tsukiyama was reminded of those early days of their acquaintance, back when Kaneki Ken had dark hair and refused to eat humans. And when he cried much more freely. The gourmet got off of the chair and kneeled by the bed.

"Kaneki-kun," Tsukiyama says calmly, though he feels anything but calm. "It's just a dream. You are safe here." He's not sure if hugging the paranoid boy was the best option, but as he rubbed circles onto Kaneki Ken's back, he slowly drifted back to sleep. He supposed it had been the best option.

In the morning, Kaneki Ken looked him in the eyes, face hard, just like the badass post-aogiri Ken he knew and said,"Don't hug me like that again without my permission, Tsukiyama-san. If it's you, I don't know if you're going to take a bite out of me or do something perverted."

Breaking eye contact and looking down, a small 'thanks' is whispered and Tsukiyama can feel his heart beat speed up for a minute. _Mon coeur…_


	2. Chapter 2

Kaneki Ken has only gotten worse over time.

Tsukiyama wraps the bandages around the broken boy. He had begged Kaneki not to go. Not to fight to protect everyone from that coffee shop. He went anyway and a damned CCG agent had hurt his precious… meal?

But even Tsukiyama hadn't seen injuries so severe in a long time. Arima, that bastard, had gone through Kaneki's skull and precious eyes with his quinque.

They're in hiding now, in Tsukiyama's home. He wanted to go find the little lady but could not afford to leave Kaneki by himself. Who knew what the boy would do if he woke up blind and alone?

It just wasn't fair.

Tsukiyama knew that now would be a perfect chance to eat him. But he doesn't. If Kaneki woke up when Tsukiyama took a bite… That would break the fragile bond he had worked so hard to forge. Just how could Kaneki be so selfish?

The gourmet had to lay low for a while. Which was hard for a man like him.

It wasn't safe in the 20th ward. Even with Tsukiyama's family influence, he wasn't sure if he could spirit the two- three, he reminded himself, of them somewhere else. Or even if he could manage to feed them all.

The Doves were swarming.

Damn that Arima. Injuring _his_ Kaneki… and so badly. He finished administrating first aid on the poor boy and sat down on the chair next to the bed. He was still going to the the dagger underneath Kaneki's pillow. Tsukiyama didn't need any payment… any reciprocation… as long as he was needed by the one-eyed ghoul. And he was needed now more than ever.

Would Kaneki Ken have brain damage? If so, just how severe? Just how much would he change from _feeling_ something go through his skull…? His night terrors would surely get worse. Tsukiyama didn't know how to comfort the once human boy. It hadn't exactly stop him before. But, all of his research _had _taken place on websites meant for parents seeking to soothe their children. The gourmet didn't see Kaneki as his child. Anything but.

But how would yet another near death experience affect him? The horrible torture he had undergone from Yamori had turned him into this _badass_ leader… Would his _badass_ level continue to grow?

As soon as he woke up, Tsukiyama would have to feed him. Kaneki needed to be fed often to heal properly and rapidly.

He'd wait, he decided. Just until Kaneki woke up and had eaten something, and then he would go and look for Hinami… Maybe Banjou too, but he

couldn't care less about Kaneki's shield. Where was he when the boy truly needed shielding? …Kaneki would feel more at ease with them around, and that's all that really mattered at the moment.

But he sleeps through that day and the next, not even stirring once and the gourmet feels ill at ease.

Finally, on the third day Kaneki Ken wakes up. His eyes are bandaged, so his frantic head movements were entirely useless.

"_Mon cher_, it's me," the gourmet says, as calmly as he could. But, he was anything but calm. Worry, anticipation, joy… fury at Arima… They all welled up inside of him. "Tsukiyama."

"Tsukiyama," Kaneki repeats, slowly. Then he snorts and lies back down. "Don't ever call me that again." To tell the truth, Tsukiyama was slightly offended at that, but decided not to voice that.

"Are you feeling well enough to eat, Kaneki-kun?"

"I don't want to eat," the white haired boy says, picking at his bandages.

"You must eat if you want to heal faster," Tsukiyama insists. "And please don't pick at your bandages. We wouldn't want any of your wounds to open up."

Kaneki snorts again before rolling over and curling up.

Tsukiyama is silent for a moment before getting up. "Kaneki-kun," he says,"I'm going to look for Hinami-chan and Banjoi-san. Will you be alright on your own for a little while?" Maybe Kaneki will eat if his 'little sister' asks him to?

Kaneki hesitates to respond. "Just… come back quickly."

Tsukiyama smiles softly. "Of course." Kaneki did need the older man… _Très bien, _Tsukiyama thought_. _He just need to be needed by the younger...

Hinami wasn't a very difficult person to find.

She was with her 'big sister' and Kaneki's human friend, Hide. Touka didn't like Tsukiyama. Well, that was an understatement. To be fair, he _had _wanted to eat her when she was younger.

Touka and Hinami were similar in a way, both having lost their parents at a tender age. So, Touka grew protective of her 'little sister.' Tsukiyama didn't really know just how Hide would have known the other two, but chose not to question it. Perhaps through Kaneki? Really, the human's interference distracted Arima and allowed Tsukiyama to spirit the practically life-less Kaneki Ken away so Tsukiyama was grateful.

Touka takes a step in front of Hinami as to protect her from Tsukiyama's nonsensical and dangerous self while Hide greets him with an awkward wave. They're outside a bookstore, both Hide and Touka holding a shopping bag.

"Flower man!" Hinami says, standing on her tip-toes, looking over Touka's shoulder.

"Hello, little lady," Tsukiyama greets her before the other two. "Touka-chan, and…" He's never learned the name of Kaneki's human friend.

"Oooh, that's right!" Hide says, somewhat on the loud side. He was cheerful… That'd be good for the recovering Kaneki, Tsukiyama thought. "My name is Hideyoshi Nagachika."

"Tsukiyama Shuu," says the gourmet.

Touka couldn't seem to get any more annoyed than she already was. Like, how dare the human get along with the twisted ghoul.

"Nice to finally know your name," Hide says. Then, quieter,"How's Kaneki?" Tsukiyama was impressed that the human could recognize him. He had been wearing a mask. Of course, his mask did nothing to hide his horrible sense in fashion, but he didn't realize that.

Touka's interest sparked. Her eyes watched him, carefully and without even some trust in the older man. Hinami was watching too, out from behind Touka.

"Kaneki-kun… woke up today," Tsukiyama admits. "But he refuses to eat."

Both the ghouls and the human frowned. Even though Kaneki's kagune type did come with faster healing abilities than the others, he wouldn't heal nearly as fast if he didn't eat.

"Can… Can Hinami-chan see big brother?" asked the youngest of the group.

Tsukiyama smiled softly at her and said,"Oh, but of course."

Tsukiyama returns to his hideously extravagant mansion with Touka, Hinami, and Hide in tow. He hadn't found Banjou, but he still had time. Actually, more time now since Touka and Hide could take care of Kaneki when he was away.

But he wasn't so sure if he wanted them to take care of his Kaneki…

Tsukiyama would let the one-eyed ghoul decide, in the end.

Tsukiyama's staff were incredibly well paid, and thus knew how to mind their own business. He had sent them all on leave when he went to recover

Kaneki and they did not question the sudden vacation. Good thing, too. Tsukiyama didn't know just how the human maids and butlers would react to the practically lifeless ghoul and young guests a few days later.

Tsukiyama knocks on the closed door. "Kaneki-kun," he calls out. "You have some visitors."

Kaneki doesn't respond, but Tsukiyama opens the door anyway. The one-eyed ghoul is curled up on the bed, like he had been when Tsukiyama left. He was awake, and moved a little when he heard the group walking in.

Touka and Hide stared at the the bandaged Kaneki. In some ways, he resembled a mummy. The two had decided to let Hinami see Kaneki later, when he was closer to healing so not to upset her.

"Kaneki!" Hide says miserably, taking a good look at just how severely Arima had wounded him.

"H-hide?" Kaneki stutters out. "You're alive." He sounds so relieved, blindly facing the bright boy. Did he really think he ate his best friend? _C'est tragique!_

"Yes," the boy says. They're hugging now. It would have been a really cute scene if Tsukiyama and Touka weren't watching awkwardly. Still, a heart warming reunion. "And so are you." Hands and arms are lingering and Tsukiyama can feel something bubble up inside of himself.

Touka coughs and they break it up.

Good, thinks Tsukiyama who had been wondering on how to get them to stop. He was jealous. Of a human; someone he could eat for dinner. Something the gourmet would never admit.


	3. Chapter 3

Hide, Touka, and Hinami were interesting additions to the household.

They livened it up quite a bit. Touka and Hinami shared a room. Hide - who complained about the only one not having a roommate - had the room next to the two girls.

It's nighttime when they're settled in.

Tsukiyama himself is exhausted from all of the excitement that the day brought. He showers. Tsukiyama likes to take cold showers. Something soothing in the icy water. Probably not something one should do right before going to sleep, but he was an adult. Adults made their own decisions. Even if those decisions were poor ones, like his clothes.

He had already changed Kaneki's bandages and seen into the black pools of nothingness. Almost no change from when the gourmet had found the boy.

He's about to turn off the light when Kaneki speaks up from the bed.

"Tsukiyama-san?"

"Yes, _mon chouchou_?" Tsukiyama says.

The white haired boy wrinkles his little nose at the term of endearment in disgust. As if he would know what it meant. "Would you read me a story?"

"_Oui, mon poulet!" _exclaims Tsukiyama, a bit too excited.

Kaneki sighs, regretting his request at once.

"Do you have any preferences?" Tsukiyama asks, scanning his many bookshelves. His fingers traced at their worn leather covers wistfully.

"Any one of them," he says hastily. "I don't have all day."

"So impatient, Kaneki-kun," the gourmet says, pulling a book out. "Ahh, this one will do."

"What's it about?"

"The book is named '_Kitchen' _and it's written by _Banana_ Yoshimoto," Tsukiyama says calmly, smiling at Kaneki's reaction. "It's a window into the life of a girl who discovers things about love and food amongst dealing with tragedy."

Kaneki snorts. "Well, go on, Tsukiyama-san. Read."

Tsukiyama does so. Until Kaneki seems to have fallen asleep. Then, the gourmet marks his spot with a bookmark and puts it on the table. "Buona notte, Kaneki-kun."

Kaneki sleeps through the entire night without any interruptions. Tsukiyama decides to read to the boy as often as he can. …If he'd be allowed to. But he can't stay around the entire day. No, he has a meeting with a 'friend.' A human meat supplier.

He wants to secure enough to feed the three ghouls… And if he finds Banjou anytime soon, he'd only need stronger ties to the mortician to support another mouth or four. Humans that had been killed in horrific accidents so that they'd have closed casket funerals… Not the type of meal Tsukiyama usually indulged himself with, but it would have to do.

_Insulso, _Tsukiyama thinks later. He had steamed part of the woman's thighs - the filet of human body - so that it wouldn't lose its flavor. Unfortunately, there was no flavor to begin with. He's disappointed but won't voice it. Not with Touka watching.

She was distrustful. What would he do? Poison the meal? _Non, _how wasteful. He would never try to poison one of Kaneki's allies when he still needed them. Oh, and food supplies were limited at this time.

"Would you like some, Touka-chan?" he offers with a smile. She doesn't dignify his question with a response other than her continued scowl. Touka is smart for not trusting the ghoul that would have gladly eaten her when she was a small child. He just wasn't trustworthy, but he was a necessary ally. Touka wouldn't delude herself; the ghoul had a twisted obsession with Kaneki Ken and that was the only reason the one-eyed ghoul was alive at the moment.

_Why, _she wanted to know. _Just why didn't Tsukiyama eat Kaneki when Kaneki was just barely alive. _The gourmet could have eaten his long awaited meal just then and there but he didn't and it was confusing the girl.

Since Hinami and Hide were being foolish enough in trusting the older man, Touka decided that she would be the one to kill him when he betrayed the little group.

Her stomach grumbles, betraying her. She accepts the offered meat… and shoves it into the one-eyed ghoul's mouth soon after, not allowing his half heartened and weakened attempted at stopping her get in her way.

Tsukiyama has always had some human food in his refrigerator. Whether it was part of his elaborate ruse or part of his desire to taste what he had so often read about, it was handy since a human was now staying with him.

Hide needed human food. He'd happily eat the coffee flavored cereal that Tsukiyama had bought on a whim a while ago while the ghouls ate various human parts - all cooked and served in the gourmet's typical manner.

All of which Kaneki refused to eat, but Touka didn't care. His eating to heal took priority over his feelings about the meals.

Tsukiyama couldn't help but feel jealous. Oh! He still wanted to eat Kaneki while Kaneki was eating… It would be _érotique._ Mmm, maybe part of those oh so _délicieux_ abs of his_. _

_"_Flower man," says the innocent Hinami. "Why are you drooling?" There's a smudge, most definitely human blood on her cheek.

"Knowing him, he's thinking about eating Kaneki or something perverted," Touka says, looking smug. She was absolutely right. But hey, Tsukiyama defended himself. It's not like he was going to kill the boy! Just a nibble or two!

Hide looks awkwardly at everyone. "Touka-chan!" he says. "That's not something we should discuss at the table." He covers his mouth, as if to hide what he is saying from Hinami. She was fourteen, Tsukiyama thought. She probably already knew about those sorts of things. And yet, those two - along with Kaneki and even Banjou and his little friends - tried to protect her. It was almost endearing.

That night Kaneki asks him again to read. "But, something else, this time. The last book was boring." Tsukiyama scowled. The boy had poor taste then, but the gourmet would try to rectify this.

"Fine," he sighs, flipping part of his hair. Really, he'd have to have it cut soon. "How about 'Catcher in the Rye?' It's an American novel." Kaneki doesn't voice any objection to the book.

As Tsukiyama settles in on the chair besides the bed, the boy speaks up.

"Tsukiyama-san, you can lie down on the bed too," he says suddenly.

"Oh?" Tsukiyama says. _Dolce. _"What's with this sudden change of heart, Kaneki-kun?"

The other shrugs, picking at a clean bandage. He'd been healing faster, now that Touka was around to force-feed him, but his eyes were still gone and various wounds remained. "If you didn't eat me when I was mostly dead, I think it's safe for you to lie on the bed with me and not do anything strange. Besides, it _is _your bed. I can smell that."

Tsukiyama smiles and says,"_Merci beaucoup._"

Kaneki frowns and says,"Don't make me regret this."

It's a few hours later when Tsukiyama finishes reading the book aloud. Both are sleepy, but not willing to fall asleep just yet.

"You know, Kaneki-kun," Tsukiyama says. "You remind me of Holden."

"How so?"

"Both of you try so hard to protect others that you don't seem to have the time to help yourself or fix your problems," Tsukiyama rambles. "You're the _catcher in the rye, _so to speak. Catching others before they fall down the cliff. But now you've fallen."

"You get weird when you're tired," Kaneki growls out. "Would you be Mr. Antolini? Touching me when I sleep?"

Tsukiyama frowns, which Kaneki cannot possibly see and says,"_Non, bien sûr que non!_"

Kaneki clicks his tongue. "I don't even know what that means. Do you like it when nobody knows what you mean when you put random foreign words in your sentences?"

Tsukiyama closes his eyes. "It's a shame," he remarks. "French is a beautiful language. And English is useful throughout. Italian is as if someone is singing a song and Spanish sounds fast and romantic. German sounds harsh, but there are ways of saying things that are so clear and are marvelous."

Kaneki doesn't have the heart to ask the sleepy gourmet to shut up about the foreign languages. At least he spoke them, Kaneki reasons. If he just yelled random words out, it'd be even stranger…


	4. Chapter 4

Tsukiyama is a light sleeper.

So, when the door is opened violently fast and loud, he rolls off of the bed and whips out his kagune, ready to fight off whoever was going to attack Kaneki Ken.

It was Touka, followed by Hide. The bright haired boy was holding a few books in his arms.

Tsukiyama put away the koukaku. His heart was still beating at its accelerated rate. _Calmato, _he told himself. _Calmato. _

"Ahh, _bonjour, _Touka-chan, Hide-kun," Tsukiyama said, collecting himself. He tries to fix his messy bed-head, to no avail. "What brings you here?"

Touka wrinkles her nose at his gaudy pajamas, but doesn't bring it up. But she can't say anything; her fashion sense is almost as disastrous. For someone to own so many rabbit-themed pieces of clothing… _C'est une tragédie! _

"We came to talk to Kaneki, but he's still asleep," says Hide. "Huh. It's pretty late too." The gourmet notices that it's half past noon and chastises himself for staying awake and keeping the healing ghoul awake for so long that night.

The books they are holding appear to be self-help books. Since Kaneki was blind… were they going to try to help him get over his trauma?

Touka and Tsukiyama say nothing. They just continue standing awkwardly.

"Well, I should be getting ready then," Tsukiyama comes to his senses. "It would be _très bien _if I could find Banjoi-san soon…"

Hide looks confused at the gratuitous French while Touka rolls her eyes. "Whatever," she says. "I'll make sure Kaneki eats when he wakes up." That's right… The one eyed ghoul hadn't woken up during his embarrassing attempt to protect him.

His outfit is no less gaudy than his pajamas. After he's successfully out the door, he holds a hand to his forehead. _Zut. Zut zut zut! _Why…? Why was he so fixated around the younger man? Kaneki was stronger than the gourmet and had nothing to worry from Touka and Hide. He was just so tired… and confused. It wasn't that long ago when he believed that Kaneki was just a meal. What was the boy to him now?

He shakes his head. Did it really matter? Tsukiyama Shuu knew that he needed to keep Kaneki safe from others — including himself. A heavy burden for a weak man.

Banjou finds him before he found Banjou. In retrospect, Tsukiyama should have brought Hinami along on the outing. She'd been bored, forbidden from seeing Kaneki until he at least had his eyes back. Until he was… more like his usual self. Hinami's sense of smell was just so much better, she'd have a much easier time than the gourmet at finding the boy's somewhat useless shield.

Someone grabs his mouth and waist and pulls him into an eerily deserted building. Not so deserted, he finds out. The larger man - Banjou - had been in hiding with those… gas masked individuals. Honestly, Tsukiyama wouldn't be able to tell them apart if their masks didn't have those numbers on the side.

"Ahh, Banjoi-san," he says, once he's let go of. "I've been looking for you."

"Banjou," the other corrects, a crease between his brows. The gourmet was a stressful person to be around. "Tsukiyama-san," he says after composing himself. "Is Kaneki alright?" The three masked ghouls watch the gourmet. Well, probably were watching the gourmet. You can't exactly see where they were looking since they were wearing gas masks.

"Eh, _Comme si, comme ça,_" Tsukiyama says, shaking his hand side-to-side. "He's alive, but badly injured."

Banjou frowns and looks down. "I should have been there," he says, likely to himself. Then he looks down at Tsukiyama and says,"Why didn't _you_ stop him?" The shield is unusually forward with the sword.

Tsukiyama says,"I did. But, if Kaneki-san puts his mind to something… I am not strong enough to stop him." He doesn't want to think about how gross he had been. Tears and snot covering his face. He had been so weak. _'For dear life… Would you please not go?' _he had said to the younger man. How could he allow himself to be so weak in front of Kaneki? Had he thought that his tears would persuade the one-eyed ghoul to not go to and meet his very likely end?

Banjou looks at him suspiciously and crosses his arms over his chest. "So where is Kaneki right now?"

"He is currently residing with me, along with Touka-chan, Hinami-chan, and a human," he offers. "I would like to extend that offer to you and… your little friends."

The gas masked men seem vaguely offended but Tsukiyama really didn't know what to call them. He'd never really bothered to learn their names.

Banjou nods. "Yeah," he says. "We'll take you up on that offer."

Tsukiyama turns around, to lead them when Banjou continues speaking. "But… if you do anything, and I mean anything, that even suggests that you're going to hurt Kaneki…" The bigger man pauses. "There won't be enough of you left to be identified."

Tsukiyama smiles and says,"That's pretty bold from someone who cannot fight." Both ghouls know that Tsukiyama is stronger than Banjou… But Banjou had friends who could fight his battles.

Hinami is overjoyed to see Banjou again. Touka looks on, ready to protect her 'little sister' if needed. Hide looked curiously at the four new additions to the Tsukiyama household.

Tsukiyama knocks on the door to his own bedroom before opening it. The room where Kaneki's been staying. _"Scusi, _Kaneki-kun," he says, ignoring the noise the door makes as it hits the wall. "Banjoi-san is here to say hello!" He says it so enthusiastically, he himself can hear how fake it is.

"Banjou," the other ghoul corrects, following him into the neat room. There are pillows supporting the bandaged Kaneki. He moves his head to face the general direction of the two.

Banjou walks over to the chair Tsukiyama usually slept in and sits down. The gourmet stays standing, watching the two.

Banjou visibly pales and almost reaches a hand out to touch the bandages wrapped haphazardly around the boy's head. It looks as if Hide had changed them. He retracts his hand last minute and Tsukiyama nods, only slightly.

"Banjou-san?" Kaneki asks. "Are you alright?" His first concern was the condition of another…

"Yes, of course, Kaneki," Banjou says. "But you're not. You've been eating right?"

Kaneki smiles and scratches at his chin. "Yes," he answers quickly. "Well, Touka isn't exactly giving me any options." He… can't be lying. Tsukiyama has _seen _Touka feed him.

Banjou frowns. The three of them know that Kaneki normally healed at an exponential rate… Kaneki needs to be fed more… And Tsukiyama doesn't know if he can provide the only growing number of ghouls with food. The _dolce_ and tender meat he's used to… He's been settling for worse and worse quality lately. And less too.

The gourmet's stomach growls lowly. But it's not quiet enough and both Banjou and Kaneki hear. He licks at his lips and says,"Perhaps I will start cooking our dinner?"

It's funny how they're so used to eating often and well. Tsukiyama has meager portions to begin with and settles with making a soup of some sort. It's not the delicate sort of flavor he was trying to reach.

The ghouls eat it together at a table while Hide waits for his instant ramen to be ready. Well… he's still a college student. The human ignores the chunks of his fellow kind's meat swimming in the broth made from human bones.

Hinami is the most enthusiastic. "This is good, flower man!" she tells him with a toothy smile. There's some flesh stuck between her two front teeth.

He smiles back and says,"Thank you, little lady."

Touka sits to Hinami's right, glaring at Tsukiyama. "Are you longing for the Ghoul Restaurant, Tsukyama?" Everyone's slowed down their consumption to watch. Hide visibly pales; does he know about the restaurant? Considering he had ties to the CCG, Tsukiyama could understand where his information would have come from.

"Y-you're _that_ psycho?" Hide stutters out. Clearly he had read the files.

Tsukiyama is disappointed in the human's reaction. It's not like he'd eat him! No, Hide was… important to Kaneki so Tsukiyama wouldn't devour him… Probably.

"_C'est vrai_," Tsukiyama says. "_Mais, _'psycho' is a rude word to call your host." He smiles with half-opened eyes. Normally a friendly sort of smile, but the gourmet wasn't exactly trusted by them — with the exception of Hinami.

Hide struggles to meet Tsukiyama's eyes when Touka mentions,"He tried to eat Kaneki." It's so casually spoken, but it makes the room incredibly tense. "But we're trusting him to sleep in the same room as him while he's recovering."

Hinami looks like she wants to say something, but the youngest ghoul stays silent.

It's awkward and nobody can look at each other for the remainder of the meal. Tsukiyama defends himself mentally: if he were going to eat Kaneki, it would have been when the boy was more dead then alive. He doesn't voice this; they wouldn't believe him.


	5. Chapter 5

And after all that talk about the gourmet eating the one-eyed ghoul, Tsukiyama Shuu still shares a room with Kaneki Ken. All that the awkward and pointed talk at the dinner table… It just caused a lot of unresolved tension between him and the others. But really? Who knew how to keep Kaneki from having his night terrors? Only Tsukiyama. It amazes the gourmet that they didn't utilize the wonder that is google. No, instead they use these strange self-help books to try to talk Kaneki through his trauma. Tsukiyama wonders how these sessions went; he was never home when they were going on.

"Tsukiyama-san?" the boy calls from his upright position on the bed. There's a ridiculous amount of pillows propping him up. One does not need seven pillows; that's about four pillows too many in the gourmet's honest opinion.

"_Oui_, Kaneki-kun?"

"I think… I can see some light through the bandages," he says, staying very still. "Could you… Could you check if my eyes…" Tsukiyama understands the request.

"_Bien sûr,_" he says coming to the younger's side. Kaneki scoffs at the random French. The bed shifts when Tsukiyama sits on it. "I'm going to feel for your eyes now, Kaneki-kun," he informs the boy. Wouldn't want to scare him.

Tsukiyama can definitely feel the fully formed eyeballs underneath neatly wrapped bandages.

"Do you want me to take them off?" he offers. Kaneki only nods. Once the bandages are off, Kaneki blinks a few times and frowns. Physically, his eyes look fine.

"Everything's… blurry," he admits to the older.

Tsukiyama frowns. When his eyes had healed, they were fine. But the gourmet's had been scratched, not completely destroyed. "Perhaps you should give it time?"

Kaneki looks at Tsukiyama for a good while and the gourmet feels uncomfortable. Was there something on his face? "Your outfits are as tacky as usual."  
>Well, it wasn't the first time someone's insulted his fashion sense. But, to have the roudoudou slander his purple and red combo! Oh, c'est triste!<p>

"Why, Kaneki-kun," says Tsukiyama,"you wound me."

The white haired boy snorts quietly. "If only it were that easy to keep you wounded. I bet your pajamas are even uglier." There's a pause. "If that's possible."

"I'll have you know that my pajamas are custom made, Kaneki-kun," Tsukiyama informs.

Kaneki shakes his head sadly. "Tsukiyama-san is so far gone, you can't even see how horrible those outfits are."

This Kaneki is more like the white haired boy Tsukiyama is accustomed to. But, the gourmet can't help but miss how dependent and sweet he was the last few days. Just like the brown haired boy he had met at the café. _C'est dommage._

Then the badass Kaneki says,"Will you read again tonight, Tsukiyama-san?" It's said very flat, no emotion attached but the older man can feel his heart speed up.  
>Against better judgement, Tsukiyama brings out an old German novel from his collection. "Ah, The Metamorphosis…" he breathes out. The piece of literature paralleled Kaneki Ken's life - to an extent. How chilling…<p>

Gregor, a traveling salesman, wakes to find himself transformed into a giant insect. Would it be as bad as becoming a ghoul? Tsukiyama wondered…

Kaneki pales during the book and ultimately isn't pleased by the tragic ending for dear old Gregor.

"What did you think, Kaneki-kun?"

"That author is really sick," is the response, tinged with resentment. Ah, yes, Kaneki had seen himself in the protagonist.

Tsukiyama nods. "_D'accord_. I usually don't go for tragic endings," he says. "Sure, they may be more realistic, _mais_…" The gourmet shrugs.

"Didn't you read Tatsuki Sen's work?" Kaneki asks. One of their earliest conversations had been concerning that author.

"They're an exception, mon lapin."

Tatsuki Sen's work is horrifying. Horrifying delicious too. Their books do not usually end on happy notes for anyone… But somehow, the horror novels are quite popular these days.  
>The two ghouls stay up - quite late too - discussing various novels. Tsukiyama forgets to put on his pajamas before he falls asleep; a good thing for Kaneki's newly formed eyes. Really. Who would even think about wearing something so tacky?<p>

Kaneki frowns at the other man's prone form. And sighs. Yes, Tsukiyama was slightly blurred, but Kaneki could see the drool coming out of the gourmet's slightly opened mouth. Not graceful or suave like the ghoul usually tries to portray himself as.  
>It takes a little while longer for him to fall asleep.<p>

* * *

><p>In the morning, Tsukiyama wakes up first. Sometime in his sleep, he had curled up into Kaneki's side. Thank god the younger man hadn't woken up. Tsukiyama probably would've been shoved off of his own bed.<p>

He rubs at his eyes before entering the master suite's bathroom. He washes his face, a ritual he preformed every morning before changing into more suitable clothing. He can't wander around his house in pajamas, can he?

Nobody else is up, he figures, climbing down the stairs to a sitting room. Now would be a good time for him to…

Tsukiyama Shuu's laptop has a password (it's the answer to some stupid French joke he's heard so long ago). He can't really trust the others in the house. It's fair. They don't trust him either.  
>He opens up his email account and looks at his contact list. Sighing to himself, he begins to type up a message:<p>

Je suis désolé de ne pas t'avoir écrit depuis si longtemps…  
>Mais, je t'écris pour te dire que-<p>

"Flower man?" calls the little lady. She's still in her pajamas, covered in sheep and stars. Adorable. He closes his laptop before answering her.

"Yes, Hinami-chan?" he says. "What do you need?"

"O-oh, I'm hungry," she admits, a little embarrassed. There's a pause before she continues speaking. "Tsukiyama-san, do you think you could teach me to cook?"

He's delighted. After Rize, he didn't think there'd be a fellow ghoul who appreciated the culinary art. He would have his own protégé. "Oui!" He's so excited and it's unseemly of his adult self.

He decides to finish that email later.


	6. Chapter 6

"France… no, the entirety of Europe… They have a more lax view of us ghouls," Tsukiyama explains at the dinner table. He swallows some water. His throat feels dry. The… household watches him with careful eyes. He cannot afford to say anything that would cast further suspicion and doubt on his character. "I suggest that our party moves to Paris. It is a_ trés belle_ city, with a good amount of ghouls living in safety." He tries to make the offer sound a bit better, but it comes out weak.

Hide doesn't look up from his sandwich for a while. He's human, not a ghoul. Not exactly persecuted, but the CCG must believe him to be dead by now. It'd be hard to return to his normal life.

Touka's answer is more immediate. "We can't just leave," she says. "We were born here. We deserve to live here. We're… we're people too!" An understandable response. But, some ghouls did have a nasty habit of murder... Including Tsukiyama. But, he had called it quits - only eating suicide victims as of late.

Hinami looks at Touka from the older girl's right. She looks just a bit scared, in fact. She hadn't even stepped foot outside of Tokyo and here Flower Man was suggesting they move to another continent. Banjou stays silent. His men were nowhere to be seen. Skipping out on meals, huh? More for the rest of the ghouls.

But, it should ultimately be Kaneki Ken's decision. He was the one that had almost been killed.

But he isn't saying anything. He isn't looking up from the meat laid out on the plate in front of him. Kaneki's not even holding his fork.

Hinami had helped the gourmet cook. Personally, Tsukiyama thought that they had done a very good job. Perhaps it wasn't to his taste?

Or was the idea of escaping to another country that horrible?

Tsukiyama had traveled abroad before and didn't see their possible exodus as nerve-wracking.

"Why France of all places?" Banjou asks, genuinely curious. Probably suspicious too.

Tsukiyama doesn't want to admit that his French is almost fluent, whereas his Italian, German, and others needed work. But that isn't the only reason.

"My parents currently are living in Paris," Tsukiyama admits. "They replied to an email I had sent and confirmed that they do have a few spare houses, if we need one."

Everyone grew silent at that.

…What had he said wrong?

"…Your parents… buy random houses," Kaneki says slowly, looking at him as if he had grown a second head.

"_Oui_," Tsukiyama confirms cautiously. Surely their parents bought vacation homes from time to time. The gourmet's parents did go a little overboard, but it couldn't be that shocking… Right?

"Tsukiyama-san," Banjou says cautiously. "That's not normal, even by your standards."

Touka nods. "No wonder you're so weird. You're literally some rich brat with zero social skills."

Hinami is smiling awkwardly, while Tsukiyama feels self-conscious. Why were an adult and a teenager tag teaming to bully him? He wasn't that strange… No, his parents were even more eccentric, if that was even possible. But, last he heard, his mother's fashion line in Paris was successful… Her outré designs sure left a mark on the runway. Some literally.

Even Hide is suddenly interested in this conversation. Would he go to France? He was considered missing by the CCG. Surely, they'd have questions if he appeared out of nowhere after such an absence.

"…You don't have to decide right now," Tsukiyama says quietly. "It is just an option, so that Kaneki-kun - and the rest of us - can stay safe from those investigators."

He can understand if those people didn't want to leave their home country, even if they were being persecuted. Tsukiyama also could understand if they wouldn't want to leave to fully depend on him. The gourmet was the only one of them that spoke French or even had connections outside of Japan...

* * *

><p>Kaneki was looking better that day, Tsukiyama thought. The younger man was exploring the house… Well. More like he was being dragged around the mansion by a very excited Hinami. It was so… <em>dolce<em>. So cute too.

His mother just would not stop emailing him.

In fact, she had sent around 10, all about her newest line for men's fashion.

_Ah, la vache!_

The gourmet was pretty sure it meant 'Ah, My Crow!' He hopes he's wrong.

The clothes mainly came in plain colors, like black and white and grey. If Tsukiyama Shuu had any advice for Tsukiyama Aimee, it'd be to add more color… Like red or purple for example. But, he was partial to those two...

She is excited to see her only child again. Happy that he grew out of his rebellious stage. She means his ghoul restaurant. Tsukiyama was actually proud of what he had accomplished.  
>But, for Kaneki, he willingly threw it all away. His parents don't know that he had only stopped for the one-eyed ghoul. Well, the gourmet doesn't really need to tell his parents why he had 'calmed' down.<p>

He sighs, flopping ungracefully into a chair. You wouldn't throw away what you've been working on for a single - but _magnificent_ - meal… Would you?

He's just so confused.

At first, he saw Kaneki Ken merely as a delicacy. Food. Fuel. A one-time thing too.

But the white haired boy is stronger than Tsukiyama can hope to ever become…. Even if he needs some time to recover. Tsukiyama isn't strong enough to kill him... His will isn't strong enough to kill the boy either... Tsukiyama's grown attached to Kaneki Ken.

He's important, yes. Irrationally so. What can the gourmet gain by continuing this madness…? Why doesn't he go by himself to Paris?

It would hurt to never see Kaneki again…

Tsukiyama can't bear to leave the one-eyed ghoul behind. Is this how it's like to have a friend? …Are they even friends? Tsukiyama has never had a real friend before…

Did Chie count?

Probably not. The photographer girl simply found him fascinating.

A ghoul that wanted to eat like humans do. It was unusual. Even… looked down upon... Especially by his father. Tsukiyama grits his teeth. He has never had an especially good relationship with the serious business man.

* * *

><p><em>thank you for your continued support! c:<em>


	7. Chapter 7

Really. It's his own house. Nobody should be shocked to find him in the room.

"O-ooh, hi, Flower Man!" Hinami says, seemingly shocked to find him there. He smiles up at the two - partially to welcome them, partially to hide his nerves.

Kaneki looks at the collection of books. "Wow," he lets out. Yes, Tsukiyama's father did have quite the collection. The gourmet won't bring up the fact that a good number of the books are actually textbooks for business when his father still wanted Shuu to inherit the family business. That phase hadn't lasted long, but the books remained.

"Bonjour, mes amis," Tsukiyama says. "Ah, this collection belonged to my father, but you're both free to browse."

Hinami is still working on kanji, but Tsukiyama remembers how Kaneki helps the little lady. She would probably appreciate having more time with the one-eyed ghoul… especially considering how the older ghouls - and Hide - had all but monopolized it.

It was good to see Kaneki up and walking again…

"Uwah, thank you!" Hinami says, clearly excited as she pulls her 'big brother' over. She pulls out a book… and then another… and another.

"Don't get too carried away, Hinami-chan," Kaneki says, a smile on his face but a hand scratching at his chin. Were his eyes still not healed completely? Either way, it wouldn't be good for him to strain them so soon.

"If Kaneki-kun isn't feeling too well, I can help you read any kanji you don't recognize, Little Lady."

Hinami grins gratefully when Kaneki responds.

"I can help Hinami-chan read."

"But you don't want to strain your eyes, Kaneki-kun," Tsukiyama says softly. Hinami hears anyway.

She looks worried. Her eyebrows are creased. "Strain his eyes? What happened to Kaneki's eyes?"

"N-nothing, Hinami-chan," Kaneki says, the hand still scratching his chin. "Your big bro might need glasses, though…"

Ohhh, glasses…

…But, Kaneki wearing glasses… How dolce! Would the white haired ghoul resemble innocence itself, so typical of glasses-wearing characters in those novels Tsukiyama was fond of?  
>Non, non, non. The more delicate Kaneki has been definitely replaced by the badass one! So, he'd be so incredibly délicieux! The gourmet could practically taste him.<p>

"Tsukiyama-san," Kaneki snaps him back to reality. "You look weird. Are you thinking strangely again?"

The older man coughs, flustered. "Bien sûr que non!"

"It would be wonderful if you stuck with Japanese when you want other Japanese-speakers to understand you," Kaneki arches an eyebrow.

"Of course not!" Tsukiyama translates. "But, we must talk about your eyes! …Later, of course." The older man sees how worried Hinami-chan looks… He needs to change the subject…

"Say, which books did you pick out, Little Lady?"

She shows him the first of the three novels. It's Out, by Natsuo Kirino. It isn't a horror novel so typical of Kaneki and Hinami's taste in books. No, it's more of a crime novel. A really good one at that. Tsukiyama wonders just how those two could read those kinds of books without fear. (Sometimes he sees Hinami watching horror movies with a horrified Banjou. He secretly agrees with the tall man. It was a mystery on how she got into such dark subjects.)

"Oh, Natsuo Kirino!" Tsukiyama says. "Did you know that she is considered the 'Queen of Japanese crime' literature? If you like Out, I have a few other books by her too."

Tsukiyama doesn't voice the fact that her characters are empowered women… Hinami is young. Far too young to have lost both of her parents to the CCG. Would these fictional women allow her to go through a catharsis? The little lady surely had some bottled up emotion…

She looks excited. "Can we start reading right away?"

Kaneki smiles at her enthusiasm. Really, it's contagious. "Sure…" he says, finding a seat for himself on the couch. Hinami sits between the white haired ghoul and the purple haired one.

* * *

><p>Hours later, Tsukiyama finally gets to ask just what Kaneki had meant… "Kaneki-kun," he says. "Is your vision okay?"<p>

"…It's harder to read now," he answers, sounding very sad… It seems like he's been punished, by having his favorite pastime taken away from him. "I really might need glasses."

With his connections, the gourmet might be able to pull some strings and have glasses made for the one-eyed ghoul. But… if anyone sold the information to the CCG, none under Tsukiyama's protection would survive.

Tsukiyama doesn't bring it up. For now, Kaneki would just have to deal with his newfound far sightedness.

Kaneki Ken wouldn't be the only ghoul to wear glasses…

There was that one other one… Nishio? Ni-something. Tsukiyama doesn't remember the guy's name. But, he had given him coffee once. That was pretty nice of Glasses considering Tsukiyama had attempted to eat the guy's girlfriend once.

The gourmet wonders what has happened to him and that human girl.

They were probably okay. The two were smart - keeping themselves far from the raid on Anteiku.

"-yama-san. Tsukiyama-san," Kaneki says. "You spaced out on me again."

"Désolé, Kaneki-kun," he apologizes. Kaneki doesn't understand it, of course, and makes a face.

The white haired man sighs. "I said I'm tired, Tsukiyama-san. I'm going to take a nap… Wake me up when dinner is ready." He does look tired, with bags underneath his eyes and unusually messy hair. Tsukiyama wants to brush the silky mass. Was it silky? It looks like it would be, the man has never touched Kaneki's hair. He wants to reach out and stroke it. But his desire to continue living outweighs his foolish wish.

"Sleep well," he manages to say,"Kaneki-kun."

"You can drop the '-kun,' Tsukiyama-san," Kaneki offers, for perhaps the sixth time. The gourmet only smiles. He doesn't feel like he is close enough to the younger man to use his name without an honorific.

But they had time, Tsukiyama mused. Probably. As long as those morticians don't decide to do something that they'd regret. Don't bite the hand that feeds you, goes the saying. Tsukiyama definitely was their highest paying customer.

* * *

><p>He considers what to cook for his make-shift household tonight while standing in his pristine kitchen. Hinami sits at the island, swinging her legs. She watches him take out some coffee beans. He'd brew up some coffee first…<p>

"Hinami-chan," he says while scooping up some of the beans. "What do you feel like making tonight?"

She licks her top lip. "Flower Man, can we try to make hamburgers out of human meat?" she asks. "Big bro liked hamburgers when he was human…"

Huh... She really was his 'ally...'


	8. Chapter 8

"Oooh, hamburgers," Hide says, looking at the human meat, but not quite realizing what it really is.

"No, no!" Hinami stops him, thankfully. Hide isn't allowed to become a cannibal! "Those are for us ghouls! Flower Man is cooking yours right now."

Hide's eyebrows furrow. "Ahh, it's not human meat, right? I probably shouldn't eat that."

Hinami shakes her head. "Nope. Your's is beef!"

Hide nods. "Finally, no cereal for me!" As a broke college student, his cooking skills… are fundamental at best. …He hadn't been attending college for a while. His status is '_missing' _on the news, but he could easily be accepted back into society...

Tsukiyama walks into the dining room, carrying Hide's meal. Hide's mouth waters. It smells really delicious, which is impressive considering the chief is a ghoul. Most ghouls don't even know _how _to cook.

_"Bon appetit," _the gourmet says with a half-lidded smile. He really does love having people to cook for - human or ghoul food. Anything to let him practice his passion! …As long as they didn't make fun of his cooking aspirations.

Hinami calls everyone into the dinning room to eat.

Touka's eyebrows rise as she sees Hide has the same meal as the ghouls. "Are you promoting cannibalism, Tsukiyama-san?" she asks. "Well, more than usual." Okay, he tried to eat like Kaneki twice. And he didn't promote cannibalism! No, he wanted to eat Kaneki all by himself! Touka and her eyebrows needed to calm down. True, attempting to eat someone was… pretty bad… Yeah, Tsukiyama was going to just stop this train of thought.

"_Non, _Touka-chan," he says, while sitting down. "Hide's hamburger is truly a hamburger… Ours are more of a… _humanburger_?"

Hinami smiles awkwardly. "Flower Man… please, no more puns."

Banjou comes in with Kaneki Ken trailing behind. The gas mask men are already seated. Tsukiyama is curious; he's never actually seen one of them with the mask off. Would he get the opportunity that day?

Kaneki looks at the hamburgers with interest - just as Hinami predicted! "Smells good," he admits.

They eat in almost complete silence. There's just the sound of knives and forks scraping against the plates. The noise is grating and, quite frankly, annoying.

Slowly, they leave after eating.

Tsukiyama gathers the plates and smiles to himself. He had given his servants a leave of absence. He can't really complain when it falls to him to wash the dishes. He collects them one by one and brings them over to the sink.

"Tsukiyama-san," Kaneki calls out, following the gourmet into the kitchen. "Do you want me to help?"

Then Kaneki sees the rubber gloves Tsukiyama was wearing - gloves he had gotten to protect his hands from the harsh dish soap. They are a ridiculous red color with a floral print.

"I'll help you out," Kaneki says, eyes narrowing and looking quite menacing. "By burning those gloves."

Tsukiyama frowns. He was actually proud of his stupid looking purchase. "But, Kaneki-kun, they match several of my suits." It's true.

"I'll burn those too."

"Now, that's just uncalled for, _mon choupinet_," Tsukiyama whines.

Kaneki shakes his head sadly and stands next to the taller man. "You wash the dishes, and I'll dry them." The two make quick work of the bloodied plates.

Tsukiyama closes the cabinet softly.

"Those… hamburgers you made," Kaneki says. "They reminded me of the ones mom used to make. But… I don't remember how mom's hamburgers taste anymore."

Tsukiyama doesn't know what to say. He doesn't remember his mother's cooking either… Mainly because she never cooked, but that was another story.

Kaneki says, "Even though you're creepy sometimes and you have the worst fashion sense possible," he pauses. Tsukiyama feels mildly offended. "You actually did something nice. So… thanks."

Tsukiyama smiles. _"Je t'en prie_," he says.

Kaneki blinks slowly. "…Once again, Tsukiyama-san, you manage to ruin a perfectly nice moment. What does that even mean?"

"You're welcome," he translates.

Kaneki sighs. "You're not in France yet. You don't need to speak French right now."

"Yet?"

"If the CCG doesn't let up, I definitely won't let Hinami stay in danger," he explains.

Tsukiyama wants to hug Kaneki! _Calmato, _he tells himself. _Calmato, calmato. _

"And you have to teach everyone who would go with us, French too," Kaneki continues. "That way, we'll finally understand you. But, if you're in France and you're speaking French, which language do you usually yell random words in…?" He sounds genuinely curious. Even if it's a horrible thought.

"I don't yell in random languages that often," Tsukiyama says, mostly to himself.

Kaneki scoffs before seeing that the ghoul is completely serious. "Oh dear god, you don't even realize." Then, he breaks out into full-blown laughter. "I-I'm sorry." He _snort_-laughs. "I can't."

Kaneki calms down and then looks at Tsukiyama, before laughing just a little more.

At least he was smiling… even if it was at the expense of the older ghoul.

"Are you done, Kaneki-kun?" he asks.

"Yeah, I think so." But, he sounds a bit happier and looks... fairly healthy - an improvement from those days he refused to eat. "So, Tsukiyama-san, what book will we be reading tonight?"

_"Ça m'est égal," _Tsukiyama says before realizing he had switched to French. "Ah, uh… You can pick today."

Kaneki nods. "Okay," he says. "Let's check out your father's library then."

The white haired man pulls out on old, marked up copy of _The Lord of the Flies. _His father's notes can be seen on the sides and various lines are highlighted.

They finish the book within a few hours.

There's a period of silence.

"For some reason," Kaneki says,"I really thought that those kids would eat each other…"

Tsukiyama frowns and thinks. "I think you mixed up _Lord of the Flies_ with _Alive._"

Kaneki shrugs. "Do you own that book too?"

"No, but if you want to read it, I can get it," Tsukiyama says, rubbing at his eyes. He's tired. Tsukiyama lies down on his side, facing Kaneki. He can't really keep his eyes open and falls asleep first again. Really… He's turning into an old man.

Kaneki sighs hopelessly and brushes some of Tsukiyama's purple strands away from his face. "Why couldn't you have been like this from the start, Tsukiyama-san?"

* * *

><p><em>thanks as always for reading!<em>

_to guest: this fanfiction began before tokyo ghoul:re came out, and will have nothing to do with it. I really don't know if Kaneki = Haise in the mangaverse (but i like to think so)_


	9. Chapter 9

"-yama-san," says Kaneki. "Tsukiyama-san." The one-eyed ghoul whispers his name again. "Wake up."

Tsukiyama blinks and looks around. "What time is it?" he partially yawns out.

"4 am," answers Kaneki,"but that's not why I woke you up. Listen." The gourmet does so. …He can hear the yelling of instructions. The CCG… They're right outside of his house! But... why? What was going on? He had been so careful...

Tsukiyama sits up quickly, wide awake. "We must wake up the others and leave," he says. Kaneki nods, agreeing.

Just how had they found out that he's a ghoul? Or, that he is at least harboring some…?

Tsukiyama wakes up Touka, Hinami, and Hide while Kaneki ushers Banjou and his men to Tsukiyama and the others. Now the group is gathered in the small sitting room.

"What's going on, Flower Man?" asks the sleepy and disoriented Hinami.

"CCG's outside," Touka says very bluntly.

Hinami's eyes widen in fright. She's already seen her mother executed by those monsters... She couldn't lose her newfound family...

"Calmato, Little Lady," he says. "The CCG doesn't know about the underground passage. It only goes one way and opens up in the basement of the building I rent an apartment in. I'll make sure that the CCG will not be able to follow." Tsukiyama pauses. "This will most likely only buy us a few hours to get out of their reach…"

"What are you going to do?" asks one of the masked men. Tsukiyama wouldn't fight them, right?

"Ah, set a small fire." He says it's so calmly, like it's nothing out of the ordinary.

He's met with a chorus of shocked 'what's and 'huh's.

"Yes, it'd be a pity to lose all those books, but…" Tsukiyama smiles bitterly. "Some sacrifices must be made." He knows that repurchasing all those books would take some time and money… if he ever gets around to that. But those old novels could burn as long as Kaneki stays safe. Tsukiyama's life revolves around the smaller man.

They listen to him for once.

An interesting development.

The fire spreads easily. Tsukiyama coughs and covers his nose and lips with a clean handkerchief. He shouldn't inhale the fumes… Though, with his ghoulish superheating, damaged organs wouldn't stay damaged for long. But why endure pain for no reason?

There's shouting outside and Tsukiyama leaves through the same tunnel the others had earlier. The mansion will collapse into itself, if he had broken enough perfume bottles and opened enough paint cans - some of his mother's things - before setting the flammable materials on fire. She wouldn't miss them, he hopes. There's a chance that she won't even remember her old things.

The gourmet coughs. It smells much better underground than in the burning house. All he has to do now is follow the tunnel to the end…

They're inside of his apartment.

Tsukiyama immediately questions the quality of the doorman and security men. Do they just let everyone in? That's terribly unsafe! ...Whatever. It worked out in his favor.

"Now what?" says Banjou. He's seated on his sofa, with one shoe on his coffee table. Tsukiyama walks over and pushes the man's foot off. You do not do that to a table designed by Isamu Noguchi!

Tsukiyama sits down on one of the remaining chairs. There's a cup of coffee for everyone. Even him. Though his coffee's on the cool side. It's delicious; either Touka or Kaneki brewed it, judging by the quality. Tsukiyama pretends that Kaneki had made it with love. Humans always said to cook with love. It applied to coffee too, right?

"Je ne sais pas," he says. Then,"I don't know…" Remembering not everyone speaks French.

Everyone's uneasy. He's tired. It's only a few minutes past 5. They'd need to vacate at 6 or 7… before the CCG researched him and his houses...

"We can't rely on any of Tsukiyama-san's safehouses in Tokyo," Kaneki says, leaning forward. "They know about him. The CCG will probably be tracking his bank accounts and purchases, so no credit cards for sure…"

"So we have to rely on cash," Tsukiyama mutters. Most of his share of the family money is in the back or invested in stocks, though he keeps a fair sum in a safe in the apartment. It'd be enough to survive for a while. But nothing extravagant.

None of them have a great deal of money on them. And they couldn't rely on any of the morgues for food. Who betrayed them? It just had to have been one of the morticians.

So no food and a limited amount of money. Great.

Hide speaks up,"It's no problem if you don't want me to stay with you guys," he says. "I'm human and technically part of the CCG, so if I just show up at their building and tell a wild story, I'll be fine. It's you guys who we have to worry about!" He smiles and looks determined to not be a burden on their limited funds.

Kaneki looks sad but doesn't say anything about Hide's idea. "Yeah… Okay," he mutters, scratching his chin. "Hide… should be safe, staying in Tokyo…"

"I'm still registered at Kamii University," Touka pipes up. "I can request to stay in a dorm… It's safe for me to stay in Tokyo."

"You could say you were sick," offers Hide with a smile. He won't be alone...

That's two less people for Tsukiyama to worry about. He can feel the creases on the forehead. He hopes he won't end up with permanent wrinkles. Tsukiyama doesn't want to look any older than he already does.

"Flower Man," says Hinami. "It's safe for ghouls in France, right?" She's desperate for a home where she won't be hunted down for something she cannot possibly change.

"Oui, Little Lady," he says. He can contact his parents — they tended to buy things they didn't need and have them transported to France. (They were fairly well off… His mother generally bought unreasonable things...) "Ghouls are considered citizens and protected under law in most countries of the European Union."

She smiles shyly. Being safe and protected by law would be a new thing for the young ghoul.

"I didn't expect us to go to France so soon," says Kaneki quietly. "I assume you can secure passage there, Tsukiyama-san…"

"Yes," he says. "My parents can pull some strings…"

"We're going too," Banjou says, referring to himself and the gas-mask squad. "So, don't forget us."

"Sure, but I'm afraid you'll have to take off your gas masks, especially in public," says Tsukiyama. "There's a ban on face coverings, which includes masks and I would rather not have to bail three people out at once... Or explain why I'm friends with criminals to my father..."

The three men mutter unhappily. Tsukiyama isn't lying about the law but he's also excited that he'll see their faces and finally be able to tell who's who! ...Unless they look similar. He dreads that.

Hide and Touka nod. They don't want Kaneki to leave them — go to a completely different continent at that! But, it'll be safe for the white haired boy and he'll finally have a chance to live happily without worrying about the CCG finding and murdering him and his friends... In the end, they only want what's best for Kaneki Ken. That's something they have in common with Tsukiyama Shuu.

* * *

><p><em>hey everyone, thanks for reading! now that the gang (well <em>_most of them) is going to france, i hope that the story will speed up a bit... can you believe we're at about 4500 reads? wow! seeing that people read/favorite/follow/review my work makes me feel happy. so, seriously, thank you! d^-^b_


	10. Chapter 10

Tsukiyama Shuu didn't expect his parents to send a boat.

Which one of them even bought the boat? Why did they buy a boat? When?

The seven of them were disguised. They wear wigs and some makeup… Hopefully it's enough to conceal their real identities, though only Tsukiyama should have to worry.

The crew of the boat talks to him in French. It's very obvious who the boat would belong to… Who else could afford a miniature ferry boat? They were the only passengers… It seems wasteful, even to Tsukiyama.

"Vos passeports," says one of the crew members. She's a ghoul, Tsukiyama can smell. Hinami looks at her curiously, and she smiles down at the girl. "Mignonne," the woman says.

"Mignonne?" Hinami repeats, a bit off. "Flower Man, what does that mean?" She turns to the older ghoul.

"She's saying you're cute," Tsukiyama says. It's true. Hinami is adorable.

Hinami blushes and looks at the ground and the woman walks towards the rest of the crew, laughing.

Banjou and his unmasked gas mask men look at the passports, examining their made-up identities. Tsukiyama notices that one's a woman. But he realizes a fatal flaw in his plan to figure out who is who: Tsukiyama never learned their names…

Kaneki wears a black wig, styled a bit differently from his old haircut. …It's a long and awkward three hours on the small boat…

The boat stops in South Korea.

"Woah," says Banjou, looking at neon signs. "So, this is France… Where's the Eiffel Tower…?" Hinami and the gas mask gang look around too, expecting the large monument to be there.

Tsukiyama winces while Kaneki only shakes his head. At least he's smiling…

"This is South Korea," Tsukiyama gently corrects. "That would be Korean. And the Eiffel Tower wouldn't be here..."

"Oh," the five say sadly.

"Wait, didn't you say we're going to France?" the only girl in the gas mask gang says.

"Why are we in Korea?" one of the men asks.

"We'll be taking a plane from here," Tsukiyama says.

"That's why we were given passports," Kaneki says from his seat. "You guys haven't taken planes before, right?"

They shake their heads. Tsukiyama is shocked. …They've really never been on a plane before? Dieu!

Kaneki smiles. "I've never been on one either," he admits.

"W-will there be snakes?" Banjou asks hesitantly.

"No," Tsukiyama says. "This isn't a movie. There won't be any snakes on the plane." Was… it a trick of the light, or did Hinami really look disappointed at that? The young girl did take a tremendous liking to that movie…

They receive luggage and plane tickets, along with some extra money.

Their plane leaves in two hours.

It is one hell of an experience to have five adults and a child on a plane when they've never been on a plane before. Tsukiyama sits in the left aisle seat while Hinami sits in the right. In between them is Kaneki.

Behind their row, the three gas mask-less ghouls sit, chattering away.

Banjou sat in the aisle seat of a two seater row with an elderly lady who kept on trying to talk to him.

The plane takes off and Hinami cries. The pressure affects everyones' ears, but they're not used to it. Kaneki pales and starts… counting backwards from 1000…? By 7's too…

"Er… Kaneki-kun?" he says. "What's wrong…?"

"Tsukiyama-san," the man says,"you didn't mention how painful flying would be… My ear hurts..." Kaneki starts to crack his knuckles.

"I-it's only temporary," he stammers out. "Oh, I know! Take a breath through your mouth, then let it go with your nose. That usually helps… Hinami-chan, you too."

They listen to him and the pain does go away…

On the back of each seat is a small tv screen. Hinami manages to find a terrifying Korean horror movies, complete with Japanese subtitles.

"Big Bro, can you help me with some of the kanji?" she asks. …The subtitles do go by fast.

The two watch the bloody movie, occasionally with Kaneki reading out a word.

Tsukiyama puts on headphones, provided by the flight attendants, and listens to classical music— a much more relaxing experience.

It's the same experience when they land a few hours later. Truthfully, Tsukiyama is jolted out of his nap by Kaneki shaking his shoulder. "Hmm?" he groans sleepily.

"Nice hair," Kaneki says, noticing the ridiculous bedhead. They had taken off their wigs before leaving South Korea, but Tsukiyama's hair had only gotten worse. "We're landing." Tsukiyama tries to fix it in vain.

The process of getting their baggage is a messy one. It is not fun to explain to several tired and jet-lagged ghouls that their stuff might have been lost.

"First the old lady wouldn't stop talking to me about her grandchildren," complains Banjou. "Now our things are gone!" Technically… they wouldn't be missed. The ghouls hadn't even opened their luggage yet plus they were in France. The Tsukiyamas would gladly provide them with whatever is needed, within reason.

Hinami points them out as they roll along the baggage carousel. Nobody would want to take their things. The three travel bags are hideous shades of purple and yellow.

"Disgusting," he hears one of the gas mask trio say.

"I guess you had to get your horrible taste from somewhere," Kaneki remarks.

Tsukiyama sniffs. …They were his from when he was a child… The others didn't need to know that fact.

Tsukiyama carries one suitcase. Banjou picks up the other two. Tsukiyama huffs. "Showoff," he says under his breath. But, honestly, he is relieved that he doesn't have to carry them all by himself.

"So, where do we go now?" Banjou asks. Ugh, he doesn't even look like he's actually putting effort into lifting the heavy suitcases.

"My mother said she'd come to collect us," he says while leading them to the pick-up area. "It's strange. Usually, she'd just send the chauffeur."

"Chauffeur," repeats Hinami, trying out the unfamiliar word.

"You got a driver too?" one of the gas-mask trio says. "Damn. Your family has nothing better to do but throw money around."

He shrugs. "Mother does throw her money around. Father is more… responsible."

"We can so rat you out," says the only girl from the gas mask trio.

The third laughs. "We can so blackmail you," he says.

"…Does your mother speak Japanese, Tsukiyama-san?" Kaneki asks.

"Eh…" Tsukiyama Aimee was born in France and met his father, Minoru, when the younger business man had been traveling in France. Both ghouls, they were drawn to each other. He was the result of their… less than average relationship. Tsukiyama Minoru had spoken French when the two had first met… His mother's Japanese is certainly less than fluent last time they spoke. "Somewhat…"

"Spare the woman," Banjou says. "She has to deal with this guy as her only child."

A chorus of "that's true" and "god bless her soul" rings out among the group of ghouls.

"Vous me brisez le coeur," he mumbles. A passing-by French man shoots him a pity-filled glance.

There's a purple haired woman with a sign that reads out: Bienvenue à Paris! Vive les ghouls! in large print.

They turn to him. "Well, I guess we know who Tsukiyama-san takes after," Kaneki says. It's true, they all realize. The woman standing there, waving, has the same face as Shuu. Her hair — his exact shade of purple — is tied in a loose ponytail. And… her fashion sense is just as bad as her son's.

"Shuu-chan!" she yells out, jogging over, still holding the sign.

The ghouls he's with laugh. "Shuu-chan," says Hinami quietly.

"Bonjour," she says to them. She frowns before starting to speak in heavily accented Japanese,"My name is Aimee Tsukiyama. I am so happy to meet you all! Shuu-chan has some lovely friends. What are your names?" She speaks so formally, but nobody can complain. Japanese isn't her first language.

"I'm Kaneki Ken," the white haired man introduces.

She invades his personal space, to fix a strand of his hair. Tsukiyama Aimee is used to doing to same for her models. "Très mignon," she says. "Surely, you will allow me to borrow you for a photo shoot, non?"

Shuu feels… vaguely jealous. But he'd never tell his own mother that… that Kaneki is rightfully his… Also, Kaneki would probably kick him for being too clingy.

"Ehhh, maybe," says Kaneki, not committing to becoming a model during his very first day of being in France.

"I'm Banjou," says the tall man.

Tsukiyama Aimee nods and she scans the man. "Shuu-chan, your friends are all gorgeous!" She giggles. "I really must borrow them sometime…" She pauses as if realizing something important. "You are… all ghouls, oui?"

Shuu doesn't like where this is going…

They hesitantly nod… Shouldn't she already know this piece of critical information?

She claps her hands. "Parfait! Then, you all can participate in my newest project… It is a collection of portraits. All of the subjects are ghouls, and it focuses on our kakugan. I feel as if it would be an interesting advertisement for my clothing line," she says all in one breath.

"Clothing line…?" Hinami asks. She looks from Tsukiyama Aimee's clothing, which consisted of bright colors and wild patterns, to Shuu, who normally dressed similarly albeit with a lot more purple and red.

The gas mask trio look at each other.

"No offense," one man says. "But… your clothing line… isn't that flashy, right?"

She laughs. "You are funny!"

* * *

><p><em>thanks for reading! the rest of the fic will take place in France :))<em>

_StrikeLightning: LotF was an adventure, lol. basically, I'm using this fic to get chances at mentioning some of my favorite books._

_LDK: yeah... i feel like i take a long time to develop romances, but hopefully ill hurry it up now that the ghoul gang is out of danger :^)_


	11. Chapter 11

The house they're given is in the outskirts of Paris, but close enough to several grocery stores and coffee shops. …Not that they needed to do much shopping.

But, to Shuu's excitement, there's a meat market down the block. Specifically, a meat market for _ghouls. _That means plenty of trips down to _Pierre's_ with Hinami. Her interest in cooking meals that they could all eat only grew when she saw the large and well equipped kitchen.

The house was nice— not as big as the house he had burned down in Tokyo, but still. There's a room for everyone… including Kaneki…

Shuu doesn't want to bring up the fact that Kaneki hasn't had nightmares in a really long time. He doesn't want to bring up the fact that he sleeps much better cuddling into Kaneki's side. Shuu sure as hell won't admit that he _cuddles_.

It's night and he brushes his hair. Honestly, he hates waking up to his awful bedhead hair, but it seems that he cannot escape his fate.

Kaneki lets himself into the room, startling the other ghoul.

"You know you can't escape," he says ominously, but breaks the eerie act with a small smile. He was referring to the hair…

"Ahh, Kaneki-kun," he greets. "Will we be sharing a room?"

"Well, yes," the white haired man says. "You _did_ promise to be the dagger under my pillow." He pauses before adding,"Also, I got used to your snoring. It'd be awfully quiet without that."

"I do _not _snore!" Shuu said, blinking rapidly. Surely… he didn't do something so… repulsive. (Almost as repulsive as his clothes, really...)

"And you sure don't cuddle, huh?" says Kaneki slyly.

The _dolce _young man laughs as Shuu turns a bright pink and tries to hide his blushing face.

"There, there," Kaneki says mockingly. "You've tried to eat me before, so cuddling isn't the weirdest thing you could possibly do in your sleep."

"_…__Pourquoi_?" Shuu lets out while climbing into the bed. The sheets are a bright purple like his hair.

Kaneki's pajamas — from Tsukiyama Aimee's sleepwear collection — are surprisingly plain. Just black silk but it looks _delicieux _on the one-eyed ghoul.

He climbs into the bed too and pulls some of the blanket away. "You always try to become some sort of cocoon," he mutters.

"I haven't gotten to collecting any books for us to read," Shuu says quietly after a moment of awkward silence. Books written in Japanese weren't that easy to find in France...

"That's fine," says Kaneki. He likes to sleep on his back, while Shuu always curls into the fetal position. "You could actually start to teach me French, Tsukiyama-san… Or should I call you Shuu-chan?"

Shuu groans. The gas mask trio refused to _stop _calling him by that ridiculous name. Even Hinami joined in! He couldn't believe he missed the days when he was simply the Flower Man.

"If you want to call me by my name, just drop the honorific, Kaneki-kun," he says, closing his eyes.

"Oh?" says Kaneki. "Hypocrite…"

He wakes up, pressed against Kaneki's side with the younger man's scent surrounding him. …A really nice way to wake up in short.

Shuu attempts to get up, but Kaneki grabs on to his arm.

"5 more minutes," he says.

"Kaneki-kun," says Shuu, but it's hopeless. They younger man is stronger than him and he's still groggy… He can stay for five minutes, he thinks.

Shuu falls back asleep only to be jolted awake an hour later.

"Big bro! Shuu-chan!" Hinami calls out while opening the door. The door slams against the wall and Shuu throws himself out of bed, wanting to get into a battle stance. He lands on the floor in a heap. Hinami winces.

Kaneki groans. "What's going on, Hinami-chan?" He stretches and gets out of the bed. He furrows his brows when he realizes that Shuu hasn't moved from the spot he fell. "…Do you want me to step on you, Tsukiyama-san?"

"Not now," he says, getting up off of the hardwood floor.

"The meat man's at the door, but he doesn't speak Japanese and we don't speak French," Hinami says quickly. She looks distressed. "Ichimi, Jiro, and Sante are trying to talk to Pierre-san. They claim they've learned some French."

The gas mask trio learned French? When? How?

"Okay, I'll go speak to _Monsieur _Pierre," Shuu said, starting to walk out of the door. Nobody stops him, even though he's still wearing his pajamas.

Pierre Beaulieu is a ghoul in his early twenties. He's seen a good amount of strange things in his short lifetime, but this by far has to be the strangest.

There aren't anymore graveyards in Paris, and most major cities of France. Instead, the corpses are given to the local ghoul meat market and sold. The Beaulieu family never wanted him to create his own meat market, but it was successful. Pierre delivers the human meat to his clients, a rare service which has garnered him more attention.

But the three ghouls wearing gas masks couldn't understand him. Also, they were wearing masks… somewhat illegal if done in public….

"Hon hon hon!" one ghoul said to him. "Baguettes!"

Pierre could not understand _why _they were saying that… Ghouls… can't eat bread…

Then, the purple haired man who had ordered the meat came rushing from upstairs wearing very bright and gaudy pajamas (what could be expected from Tsukiyama Aimee's child?)…

"Good morning!" the Tsukiyama says. "Sorry about that. I just woke up."

Pierre laughs— more awkwardly than anything. "I can see that!" Shuu's hair is sticking up in funny directions despite his best efforts. Pierre hands over two paper bags. "Here are your orders." He then whips out a booklet. "Please sign here."

Tsukiyama Shuu's signature is just as big and elegant as expected. He takes the bags and lets the door close with a _click_. He unpacks the purchases— mostly lean meat, but some bone and organs too — and puts them away in the refrigerator.

"I'm going to take a shower," he calls out. "Then I'll cook breakfast. Tell the Little Lady what you guys would like."

He dresses in a spotted t-shirt and red pants. Finally, Shuu combs his hair. He feels as if he's ready for anything the day could bring.

"So, _mes amis," _he says. "What have you decided?"

Banjou sits on one couch with two of the gas mask trio. The last member of the trio sits by themselves on a loveseat. Kaneki and Hinami are together on the other couch. Honestly, he takes the longest to get ready in the morning… It would have taken him longer if he still had his mascara and eyeliner on him… Unfortunately those had been lost in the fire...

"Something light," suggests Jiro. She's the only girl in the gas mask group.

"Steamed meat then," mutters Shuu. "Come along Hinami. I didn't show you how to cook that, did I? _C'est facile!" _

"_C'est facile_," she repeats. "What does that mean?"

"It's easy," he translates for her. A simple cooking technique that brings out the delicate flavors of human meat.

* * *

><p><em>OneYearPeanut: i love your username and your icon is adorable :^o i wanted Tsukiyama Shuu to take after his mother tbh, it's one of my headcanons<em>

_Blood tinted rain: ahhh, you're so sweet. honestly seeing other people enjoy my work is enough for me, but reading their thoughts is a nice bonus lol. this story's more focused on shuu (because i am biased... :^p) but hopefully ill nail kaneki's pov a little later on. et, je t'aime aussi, mon lapin... haha B^)_


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